Ferguson's lawyer seeks delay in bid-rigging trial

Jul. 15, 2013

Bobby Ferguson's lawyer today asked for a delay in the contractor's bid-rigging retrial, arguing that he would be 'completely and totally ineffective' if he were forced to try the case on Sept. 10. / Bill Pugliano/Getty Images

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Detroit Free Press Staff Writer

Bobby Fergusonís lawyer today asked for a delay in the contractorís bid-rigging retrial, arguing that he would be ďcompletely and totally ineffectiveĒ if he were forced to try the case on Sept. 10.

Thatís the trial date that U.S. District Judge David Lawson has set for Ferguson, who is facing a retrial on bid-rigging charges after his last case ended in a mistrial last June.

But Fergusonís lawyer, Michael Rataj, argued today that he wonít be ready to try the case until next February. And if heís forced to try the case in two months, Fergusonís Sixth Amendment right to effective counsel could be violated.

ďSimply stated, there is simply no way that counsel can accomplish all the things that need to be done regarding the preparation for trial within the time limits currently established by this Honorable Court,Ē Rataj wrote in todayís filing.

Ferguson is behind bars following his March 11 conviction in the separate, public corruption trial, which ended with him and former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick getting convicted on 31 counts combined.

Fergusonís latest legal battle involves claims that he and two associates rigged bids on a nearly $12-million public housing project so that Fergusonís firm would win the deal, which it did.

Lawson assigned Rataj to the case following months of controversy that involved Fergusonís assets. Initially, Ferguson said he didnít want a court-appointed lawyer, but he also refused to fill out the financial affidavit that is required of all criminal defendants who claim they are indigent and need a court-appointed lawyer.

Ferguson, though, ultimately agreed to fill out the affidavit and persuaded Lawson he qualified for a taxpayer-funded lawyer.

Meanwhile, Rataj, who helped defend Ferguson in the public corruption trial, said he needs more time to do the following:

■ Prepare a budget and have it approved by two federal courts.

■ Request a co-counsel, a paralegal, a jury consultant, and other possible support personnel.

■ Prepare a jury questionnaire and mail it out 30 days prior to trial.

In Fergusonís last bid-rigging trial, a jury questionnaire was not used. Instead, Lawson interviewed the prospective jurors in open court about their potential biases and backgrounds. One of the final jurors picked wasnít truthful during the process, the Free Press learned after the jury deadlocked. The woman never disclosed that her husband had a criminal conviction, that her daycare was under investigation or that the couple had once filed bankruptcy ó information that legal experts said would have likely kept her off the jury.

The woman, according to multiple jurors, was the holdout. She was never charged.